Why I love my new juicer!

Back in January 2012 I had been reading loads about the benefits of juicing and how these juices can seriously up your intake of vitamins and minerals, but it wasn't until I saw an amazing online short film about diet and food that included a piece about drinking freshly made juices, that I made up my mind to give it a go.

At the time I was actually really unwell with the flu and as I hate to use conventional medicine, I thought i'd turn to some good foods to help me. Somewhere in my dim and distant memory I remembered I had been given a juicer and indeed found it right at the back of the kitchen cupboard where it had been relegated to that 'i'll use that later' place!

Now this was a very small juicer, no particular brand and the part that you push the fruit or veg down with was missing. However, not to be detered I dutifully chopped up apples, carrots, lemons, celery, berries, spinach...you name it, and forced it through this contraption using various wooden utensils (all of which are now slightly shorter where I kept hitting the blades). Alarmingly, smoke used to appear if it was having trouble with certain harder vegetables like carrots, but juices I did make!

To my delight and amazement I very quickly started to feel better. This was my new best friend, and my children's, although they were banned from using it due to high risk of losing fingers, but we drank juice every day. But oh my goodness it was time consuming and more juice seemed to stay in machine than end up in our glasses. There had to be a better way.

After some internet research, it became pretty clear which product was considered one of the best. The Philips 700w. It looked great, it didn't break the bank, it came with a book of juices and it could be here the next day! Sold.

Well, I have never been so excited over a kitchen appliance before (probably never again!) and after a speedy unwrapping we were poised with whole apple in hand. Marvelling at the quietness of the thing I dropped the whole (I know i'm saying this twice but believe me it was a revelation not to have to cut into tiny pieces) apple down the huge chute, luxuriously pushed down the plunger (my utensils were saved) and in our utter amazement the apple practically evapourated in seconds into tiny, almost dry bits and the most juice i've seen easily poured down the elegant spout into the glass.

With utter delight, several times that day, my children and I watched most of the contents of the fridge and the fruit bowl turn into delicious and colourful juices! It was so enormously satisfying that I may have become a juice pest over the coming days. Being ever so slightly evangelical about the benefits of juicing, I insisted my neighbours bring their fruit and veg that has that neglected look about it and turn it into drinkable delights.

I have somewhat calmed down since those heady days of new juicer, which is a blessing for my neighbours, children and bank balance (we went through a lot of foods) but I am as in love with it as ever and still silently delight in the way it glides through a carrot, effortlessly wrings dry some spinach and makes light work of an apple.

So it is with experience and passion that I highly recommend the Philips 700w juicer. It's easy to use, some would say a joy, easy to clean and most satisfyingly, it is easy to get in some extra nutrition, even into the kids!